"What the--?" Sanzo nearly fell over in disbelief. *How is this possible? He still has his coronet on!*
Hakkai held his bleeding shoulder and looked over to Goku's hands. "How--?" Suddenly and almost irrepressible urge to strike back at Goku flashed through his mind. "No!"
"Hakkai! What's wrong?" Goku panicked as he looked down at Hakkai who was on his knees, panting hard and staring up at Goku wide-eyed.
"Something is seriously wrong here." Sanzo said aloud to no one as he helped Hakkai to his feet and held him stable for a moment.
"W-we should go....Where's Gojyo?" Hakkai asked as he confirmed to Sanzo he could stand on his own.
"Where would we go? The town's not for another two days." Sanzo reestablished. Then realizing that Gojyo had been gone a little longer than he should have been, Sanzo looked out of the tent while Hakkai went about healing his wound and consoling a still very shaken Son Goku. "Where *is* Gojyo?"
* * *
"Goddamn mosquitoes," Gojyo mumbled to himself as he smacked the small vampire on his arm. He was put into a foul mood as he had lost his way back to the tent and his cigarette had practically burned down to the filter. "This is just great. It couldn't possibly get any worse than this."
Just then as if the Gods were mocking him, the rain began to pick up, the raindrops echoing in the forest around him. Holding his middle finger to the heavens, Gojyo snuffed the last of his cigarette out on the wet leaves. "Fuck you... *Merciful* Goddess my ass." Gojyo was just about to turn when he heard another rustle in the bushes behind him. When he looked around, he was suddenly pummeled to the ground by a large brute force from the side.
Gojyo slid on the wet leaves and moss, wincing as his side was exposed to the small, sharp rocks that littered the ground. Quickly, he summoned his shakujou which he grabbed hold of as soon as it was tangible. Stumbling to his feet he looked around, on guard and senses at their highest.
*There's two.* He thought to himself as he firmly took hold of his weapon with the other hand. It was then he caught the sound of objects flying through the air in his direction. Jumping back, he was able to block the large acupuncture needles with his shakujou. They bounced off the metal with a slight *clang* and stuck in the ground at his feet.
"What the hell?! What kind of pussy fights with--?" Gojyo sensed someone behind him, gasping as he spun around to come face to face with a lanky, kunai packing demon. His expression changed as he growled thru his teeth. "You little bastard!"
Gojyo swung the chained blade at the demon who easily jumped over it. Grunting in frustration, Gojyo barely evaded the downward strike of the kunais from above. Holding his shakujou in a ready position, he awaited another strike. All of a sudden, something whizzed past his ear and following the sound he felt whatever it was pierce his right shoulder.
Gojyo's arm immediately went numb and fell to his side. He reached for the long needle embedded in his muscle as a kunai was plunged into his other shoulder. The shakujou dropped from his hands and disappeared before it hit the ground. Gojyo cried out as he was ruthlessly slammed against a tree where the demon grabbed the kunai and forced it deeper into his shoulder hard enough to pin him to the tree.
Gojyo took the first breath in three seconds since the attack began. "Wh-who the hell are you?" He managed to gasp out before a needle thrown from the trees plunged into his left thigh. Gojyo winced and held in a scream as the demon with the kunai began to trace a blade down Gojyo's chest, cutting the shirt and leaving a deep bleeding trail. Gojyo mustered all the energy he could to kick out at the demon's knee with his one good leg, smirking as he heard the beautiful *SNAP* of his opponent's kneecap. The demon stumbled back howling in pain.
"Goes to show you *not* to fuck with m--" Before his sentence was finished, there were three new deep slashes across his chest as he saw that the "wounded" demon was back on his feet. "No way..."
The demon grabbed Gojyo's neck and slowly peeled him off the tree. He screamed as his shoulder was set afire as the kunai was wedged from the tree but kept its place in his shoulder.
The demon held Gojyo by the throat as he glared into the watery crimson eyes of his prey with his own abysmal black ones. "We were told not to kill you or your friends so consider yourself lucky for the moment."
"How...generous. Who told...you this?" Gojyo managed to choke out as he hung at his attacker's mercy.
"Doesn't matter to you."
Gojyo took a deep ragged breath, "My friends or I don't need any luck from you."
The demon laughed, "I think you'll need all the luck you can get, Sha Gojyo. Because I'm not going to be the one whose going to kill them." The demon grinned and licked his lips as he brought his face an inch from Gojyo's. "You are."
Gojyo's eyes went wide, "What?"
The demon laughed as he threw Gojyo hard across the forest floor. He slid on the wet leaves and stopped abruptly when his head hit a large rock jutting from the ground. Gojyo's vision blurred as he felt himself slipping from consciousness. He passed out as he lay there, his open wounds welcoming in the poisonous rain coming from above. But before the world went completely black, he could swear he heard his name echoing through the woods.
Hakkai held his bleeding shoulder and looked over to Goku's hands. "How--?" Suddenly and almost irrepressible urge to strike back at Goku flashed through his mind. "No!"
"Hakkai! What's wrong?" Goku panicked as he looked down at Hakkai who was on his knees, panting hard and staring up at Goku wide-eyed.
"Something is seriously wrong here." Sanzo said aloud to no one as he helped Hakkai to his feet and held him stable for a moment.
"W-we should go....Where's Gojyo?" Hakkai asked as he confirmed to Sanzo he could stand on his own.
"Where would we go? The town's not for another two days." Sanzo reestablished. Then realizing that Gojyo had been gone a little longer than he should have been, Sanzo looked out of the tent while Hakkai went about healing his wound and consoling a still very shaken Son Goku. "Where *is* Gojyo?"
* * *
"Goddamn mosquitoes," Gojyo mumbled to himself as he smacked the small vampire on his arm. He was put into a foul mood as he had lost his way back to the tent and his cigarette had practically burned down to the filter. "This is just great. It couldn't possibly get any worse than this."
Just then as if the Gods were mocking him, the rain began to pick up, the raindrops echoing in the forest around him. Holding his middle finger to the heavens, Gojyo snuffed the last of his cigarette out on the wet leaves. "Fuck you... *Merciful* Goddess my ass." Gojyo was just about to turn when he heard another rustle in the bushes behind him. When he looked around, he was suddenly pummeled to the ground by a large brute force from the side.
Gojyo slid on the wet leaves and moss, wincing as his side was exposed to the small, sharp rocks that littered the ground. Quickly, he summoned his shakujou which he grabbed hold of as soon as it was tangible. Stumbling to his feet he looked around, on guard and senses at their highest.
*There's two.* He thought to himself as he firmly took hold of his weapon with the other hand. It was then he caught the sound of objects flying through the air in his direction. Jumping back, he was able to block the large acupuncture needles with his shakujou. They bounced off the metal with a slight *clang* and stuck in the ground at his feet.
"What the hell?! What kind of pussy fights with--?" Gojyo sensed someone behind him, gasping as he spun around to come face to face with a lanky, kunai packing demon. His expression changed as he growled thru his teeth. "You little bastard!"
Gojyo swung the chained blade at the demon who easily jumped over it. Grunting in frustration, Gojyo barely evaded the downward strike of the kunais from above. Holding his shakujou in a ready position, he awaited another strike. All of a sudden, something whizzed past his ear and following the sound he felt whatever it was pierce his right shoulder.
Gojyo's arm immediately went numb and fell to his side. He reached for the long needle embedded in his muscle as a kunai was plunged into his other shoulder. The shakujou dropped from his hands and disappeared before it hit the ground. Gojyo cried out as he was ruthlessly slammed against a tree where the demon grabbed the kunai and forced it deeper into his shoulder hard enough to pin him to the tree.
Gojyo took the first breath in three seconds since the attack began. "Wh-who the hell are you?" He managed to gasp out before a needle thrown from the trees plunged into his left thigh. Gojyo winced and held in a scream as the demon with the kunai began to trace a blade down Gojyo's chest, cutting the shirt and leaving a deep bleeding trail. Gojyo mustered all the energy he could to kick out at the demon's knee with his one good leg, smirking as he heard the beautiful *SNAP* of his opponent's kneecap. The demon stumbled back howling in pain.
"Goes to show you *not* to fuck with m--" Before his sentence was finished, there were three new deep slashes across his chest as he saw that the "wounded" demon was back on his feet. "No way..."
The demon grabbed Gojyo's neck and slowly peeled him off the tree. He screamed as his shoulder was set afire as the kunai was wedged from the tree but kept its place in his shoulder.
The demon held Gojyo by the throat as he glared into the watery crimson eyes of his prey with his own abysmal black ones. "We were told not to kill you or your friends so consider yourself lucky for the moment."
"How...generous. Who told...you this?" Gojyo managed to choke out as he hung at his attacker's mercy.
"Doesn't matter to you."
Gojyo took a deep ragged breath, "My friends or I don't need any luck from you."
The demon laughed, "I think you'll need all the luck you can get, Sha Gojyo. Because I'm not going to be the one whose going to kill them." The demon grinned and licked his lips as he brought his face an inch from Gojyo's. "You are."
Gojyo's eyes went wide, "What?"
The demon laughed as he threw Gojyo hard across the forest floor. He slid on the wet leaves and stopped abruptly when his head hit a large rock jutting from the ground. Gojyo's vision blurred as he felt himself slipping from consciousness. He passed out as he lay there, his open wounds welcoming in the poisonous rain coming from above. But before the world went completely black, he could swear he heard his name echoing through the woods.